Truth, Honesty and Self Proclaimed (so called) Adepts

As anyone can see that reads my blog, I believe magic to be a spiritually sacred practice where the magician seeks interaction and relationships with the many varied forces of the material and spiritual worlds to make material life easier, and develop themselves spiritually. After all, as it says in the opening page of the Lemmegeton Clavicula Salomonis, taken from the preface of the Harley 6483 manuscript : Magick is the highest and most absolute divinest knowledge of Natural Philosophy. Because of the sacredness that is attributed to the magical arts, I also believe that it is extremely disrespectful for any magician to devalue this sacredness with dishonesty and lies.

One only has to look on the web to see that this is rife in the occult world, especially so on forums where one will come across the over inflated egos of the self proclaimed experts and adepts. Unfortunately this is to be expected in any community where knowledge and power are key ingredients. It is ironic that this is especially so in the magical world where the lower ego is supposed to be kept in check and dealt with in order to allow the higher spiritual will to flourish. But what I think is very sad to see is when people's lower ego takes control over the things they say, which end up spurting out nothing but their own false and twisted ideas about other magician's practices for no reason that I can see, but their own immature and negative attitudes. This really does annoy me, and especially so when I see my name mentioned along with other magician's names (who I have the utmost respect for) insinuating that we are full of bull shit because we do things differently.

I believe that truth and honesty are an integral part of the magician's art, but if they are not high on the magician's list of priorities, then it should come as no surprise when things don't always go according to plan, and the information sought from the spirits often turns out to be unreliable at best. Because, if the magician can't be honest with him or herself and others, then why should the forces they seek to contact be honest and truthful with them!

This is only something that the individual can learn for themselves because, you or someone else can tell them until you go blue in the face, but they will not want to listen because they are too blinded by their own self importance, and their ignorant opinions.

I left the pagan scene because of this, and even had a debate with a “so called (self proclaimed) master of the occult” because this person claimed they new all there was to know about magic and the occult. This obviously set my alarm bells ringing, so off I went down the solitary path which, has been much more magically rewarding.

So a word of advice to anyone setting out on the magical path, is to exercise a bit of common sense when seeking guidance from others, because, quite often those who accuse others of negative things, are normally guilty of such things themselves.

Putting the Mysticism back into Magic

Nowadays when people talk about their magical workings and the goals which they work magic for, they seem to mainly involve satisfying material desires, such as wealth, money, love, health, business and sometimes even popularity. While the satisfaction of material desires takes precedence, the mystical aspects quite often get neglected. I think this is quite unfortunate because I believe magic to be a very sacred practice, with mysticism being as much a part of magic as are the spirits that the magician works with.

Mysticism helps establish a solid foundation from where a magician can stand to work his or her magic for spiritual and material purposes. Through doing so it aids in the unification of the higher and lower natures, and results in the birth of a new form of spiritual consciousness. Just like the semi divine heroes found in mythology, as they are the product of the union between spirit and matter which, is often portrayed as a god and a mortal woman. Once this spiritual state of being comes forth, it then starts to unfold itself as we learn to exercise its powers within our lives.

How do we put the mysticism back into magic? For myself it came from learning to understand allegory and the magical language of symbolism. Which, I found to be hidden in the sacred words and images of the grimoires themselves. Unfortunately, this way of seeing is often misunderstood by those who misrepresent allegory and symbolism with so called secret codes and blinds. This skewed view probably stems from the misappropriation of certain old sources, like that found in the Greek Magical Papyri PGM X11. 401-44. In this text there is an example given of a secret code of names used for herbs and other such things to act as a blind for the uninitiated. But, this is not what I mean by allegory and symbolism. Instead, allegory uses nature's alphabet of symbols to teach spiritual truths through the process of analogy. Because, through using analogy it shows the parallels that exists between the subjective world, and the objective world. And, in this way the phenomena that is seen to happen in the exterior world is interpreted as a reflection of the inner world of spirit. “That which is above is like that which is below.” Nature is the analogue of spirit, so in the words of Wordsworth. "Let nature be your teacher"

It is from nature's symbols which are used to depict allegory, that we get our associated lists of magical correspondences. These items are then used in magic because of the inherent spiritual meaning that is connected to them. For example; lets take the instruction which is found in the Key of Solomon for using bats blood. The bat is part of the Chiroptera family, which means -"hand wing." The hand is a symbol of creative power because, it is our hands that we use to create physical things with. The wing indicates the ability to fly in the air, which is normally associated to birds therefore, it is a symbol that represents the activity of spirit. Considering bats are nocturnal creatures, they represent the creative power of spirit operating in matter. This is because the imagery of the “night” is a symbol for matter. Plus, bats are also fond of hanging upside down, pointing directly towards earth - the world of matter.

But, there is more; in the “key of Solomon” Chapter X1V it gives the instruction to draw the blood of a bat from its right wing. Why not its left wing? The answer more than likely is to be found in the meaning of the symbolism associated to the hands. The right hand is for giving, representing the active outgoing energy of creativity. While the left hand is for receiving, representing the passive incoming energy of creativity. This is exemplified in the paintings of ancient Egyptian art where the gods are sometimes shown with either two left hands, or two right hands. This depicts the role they are playing as passive or active. And therefore, the use of bats blood from the creature's right wing, would seem to suggest that it represents the active power of spirit operating in matter.

By incorporating mysticism into magic it will help in forming a substantial understanding of the processes used. Or as Mr Lisiewski calls it, “subjective synthesis.” It is then that magic will become a much more wholesome practice, enabling us as magicians to provide for ourselves materially, and develop spiritually. As Joseph Lisiewski also says in his book, “Howlings from the Pit;” Mysticism completes Magic.

Sun And Flesh (Credo In Unam) by Arthur Rimbaud

Here is a beautiful poem that was put on a forum for me by a very dear friend of mine. She had chosen it with much thought, knowing my interests and what speaks to my inner spiritual nature.

Thank you my dear friend, Dominic  :)

Sun And Flesh (Credo In Unam) by Arthur Rimbaud


Birth of Venus
I
The Sun, the hearth of affection and life,
Pours burning love on the delighted earth,
And when you lie down in the valley, you can smell
How the earth is nubile and very full-blooded;
How its huge breast, heaved up by a soul,
Is, like God, made of love, and, like woman, of flesh,
And that it contains, big with sap and with sunlight,
The vast pullulation of all embryos!
And everything grows, and everything rises!

- O Venus, O Goddess!
I long for the days of antique youth,
Of lascivious satyrs, and animal fauns,
Gods who bit, mad with love, the bark of the boughs,
And among water-lilies kissed the Nymph with fair hair!
I long for the time when the sap of the world,
River water, the rose-coloured blood of green trees
Put into the veins of Pan a whole universe!
When the earth trembled, green,beneath his goat-feet;
When, softly kissing the fair Syrinx, his lips formed
Under heaven the great hymn of love;
When, standing on the plain, he heard round about him
Living Nature answer his call;
When the silent trees cradling the singing bird,
Earth cradling mankind, and the whole blue Ocean,
And all living creatures loved, loved in God!

I long for the time of great Cybele,
Who was said to travel, gigantically lovely,
In a great bronze chariot, through splendid cities;
Her twin breasts poured, through the vast deeps,
The pure streams of infinite life.
Mankind sucked joyfully at her blessed nipple,
Like a small child playing on her knees.
- Because he was strong, Man was gentle and chaste.

Misfortune! Now he says: I understand things,
And goes about with eyes shut and ears closed.
- And again, no more gods! no more gods! Man is King,
Man is God! But the great faith is Love!
Oh! if only man still drew sustenance from your nipple,
Great mother of gods and of men, Cybele;
If only he had not forsaken immortal Astarte
Who long ago, rising in the tremendous brightness
Of blue waters, flower-flesh perfumed by the wave,
Showed her rosy navel, towards which the foam came snowing
And , being a goddess with the great conquering black eyes,
Made the nightingale sing in the woods and love in men's hearts!

The Birth of Venus


II


I believe! I believe in you! divine mother,
Sea-born Aphrodite! - Oh! the path is bitter
Since the other God harnessed us to his cross;
Flesh, Marble, Flower, Venus, in you I believe!
- yes, Man is sad and ugly, sad under the vast sky.
He possesses clothes, because he is no longer chaste,
Because he has defiled his proud, godlike head
And because he has bent, like an idol in the furnace,
His Olympian form towards base slaveries!
Yes, even after death, in the form of pale skeletons
He wishes to live and insult the original beauty!
- And the Idol in whom you placed such maidenhood,
Woman, in whom you rendered our clay divine,
So that Man might bring light into his poor soul
And slowly ascend, in unbounded love,
From the earthly prison to the beauty of day,
Woman no longer knows even how to be a Courtesan!
- It's a fine farce! and the world snickers
At the sweet and sacred name of great Venus!

III


If only the times which have come and gone might come again!
- For Man is finished! Man has played all the parts!
In the broad daylight, wearied with breaking idols
He will revive, free of all his gods,
And, since he is of heaven, he will scan the heavens!
The Ideal, that eternal, invincible thought, which is
All; The living god within his fleshly clay,
Will rise, mount, burn beneath his brow!
An when you see him plumbing the whole horizon,
Despising old yokes, and free from all fear,
You will come and give him holy Redemption!
- Resplendent, radiant, from the bosom of the huge seas
You will rise up and give to the vast Universe
Infinite Love with its eternal smile!
The World will vibrate like an immense lyre
In the trembling of an infinite kiss!

- The World thirsts for love: you will come and slake its thirst.

....................................................

O! Man has raised his free, proud head!
And the sudden blaze of primordial beauty
Makes the god quiver in the altar of the flesh!
Happy in the present good, pale from the ill suffered,
Man wishes to plumb all depths, - and know all things! Thought,
So long a jade, and for so long oppressed,
Springs from his forehead! She will know Why!...
Let her but gallop free, and Man will find Faith!
- Why the blue silence, unfathomable space?
Why the golden stars, teeming like sands?
If one ascended forever, what would one see up there?
Does a sheperd drive this enormous flock
Of worlds on a journey through this horror of space?
And do all these worlds contained in the vast ether,
tremble at the tones of an eternal voice?
- And Man, can he see? can he say: I believe?
Is the langage of thought anymore than a dream?
If man is born so quickly, if life is so short
Whence does he come? Does he sink into the deep Ocean
Of Germs, of Foetuses, of Embryos, to the bottom
of the huge Crucible where Nature the Mother
Will resuscitate him, a living creature,
To love in the rose and to grow in the corn?...

We cannot know! - We are weighed down
With a cloak of ignorance, hemmed in by chimaeras!
Men like apes, dropped from our mothers' wombs,
Our feeble reason hides the infinite from us!
We wish to perceive: - and Doubt punishes us!
Doubt, dismal bird, beat us down with its wing...
- And the horizon rushes away in endless flight!...

.......................................................

The vast heaven is open! the mysteries lie dead
Before erect Man, who folds his strong arms
Among the vast splendour of abundant Nature!
He sings... and the woods sing, the river murmurs
A song full of happiness which rises towards the light!...
- it is Redemption! it is love! it is love!...


IV

O splendour of flesh! O ideal splendour!
O renewal of love, triumphal dawn
When, prostrating the Gods and the Heroes,
White Callipyge and little Eros
Covered with the snow of rose petals, will caress
Women and flowers beneath their lovely outstretched feet!
- O great Ariadne who pour out your tears
On the shore, as you see, out there on the waves,
The sail of Theseus flying white under the sun,
O sweet virgin child whom a night has broken,
Be silent! On his golden chariot studded with black grapes,
Lysios, who has been drawn through Phrygian fields
By lascivious tigers and russet panthers,
Reddens the dark mosses along the blue rivers.
- Zeus, the Bull, cradles on his neck like a child
The nude body of Europa who throws her white arm
Round the God's muscular neck which shivers in the wave.
Slowly he turns his dreamy eye towards her;
She, droops her pale flowerlike cheek
On the brow of Zeus; her eyes are closed; she is dying
In a divine kiss, and the murmuring waters
Strew the flowers of their golden foam on her hair.
- Between the oleander and the gaudy lotus tree
Slips amorously the great dreaming Swan
Enfloding Leda in the whiteness of his wing;
- And while Cypris goes by, strangely beautiful,
And, arching the marvellous curves of her back,
Proudly displays the golden vision of her big breasts
And snowy belly embroidered with black moss,
- Hercules, Tamer of beasts, in his Strength,
Robes his huge body with the lion's skin as with glory
And faces the horizons, his brow terrible and sweet!

Vaguely lit by the summer moon,
Erect, naked, dreaming in her pallor of gold
Streaked by the heavy wave of her long blue hair,
In the shadowy glade whenre stars spring in the moss,
The Dryade gazes up at the silent sky...
- White Selene, timidly, lets her veil float,
Over the feet of beautiful Endymion,
And throws him a kiss in a pale beam...
- The Spring sobs far off in a long ectasy...
Ii is the nymph who dreams with one elbow on her urn,
Of the handsome white stripling her wave has pressed against.
- A soft wind of love has passed in the night,
And in the sacred woods, amid the standing hair of the great trees,
Erect in majesty, the shadowly Marbles,
The Gods, on whose brows the Bullfinch has his nest,
- the Gods listen to Men, and to the infinite World!

Invocation of Tahuti

As it is the day of Mercury, I thought I would share an invocation I wrote about 5 years ago to the Egyptian god Tahuti/Thoth. I borrowed some phrases from here and there, so you will probably recognise some of the words.

Self created one wisdom divine
God of magic, Lord of scribes
thou Ibis headed one, I call to thee
Thrice greatest Tahuti
I invoke thee

Thou whose head is clothed in the colour of the night sky blue
thou who holds within thy hands the scribal palette and writing reed too
Thee thee I invoke

Thou who measures and numbers the stars
thou who is the tongue and glowing heart of Ra
Thee thee I invoke
To descend upon this circle of art

Wisdom crowned Tahuti
God of magic appear to me
Divine scribe Tahuti
God of writing I invoke thee

Show me the mysteries of your creation
tell me the proper incantations
speak to me the words that spell success
and teach me the magic that will have the desired effects

Tahuti, thou of iridescent splender divine
thou who is the truth in mind
O thou Majesty of wisdom crowned
I call to thee and I invoke thee
Tahuti come to me

Behold, I am thee who is the scribe of the gods
who standeth in the hall of judgement
where I record the deeds of the dead
I am he who reports to the Neter
the result of the weighing of the heart with a feather

I am he who nourishes the sun folk
I give breath to him that is in secret places
by the power that is within my mouth
I am he who made Osiris triumphant over his enemies

Behold he is in me and I am in him
I travel upon high and tread upon the firmament of Nu
I standeth in my splender at the prow
while Ra-Hoor abideth at the helm

I am the fountain-head of wisdom
the mind of the divine Sun
when I open up my mouth
the truth flows out and it is done
I am the Mighty intelligence, astute, divine
where I am are the Great Powers of the mind

Tahuti, I call to thee
thou who holds the sacred words for eternity
thou who writes them down and vibrates them with sacred sound
come thou forth I say and aid and guard me in this work of magic art

Come thou forth I say, come thou forth and make all spirits subject to me
so that every spirit of the firmament and of the ether
upon the earth and under the earth
on dry land and in the water, of whirling air and rushing fire
and every spell and scourge of God
may be obedient unto me.

A Traditional Goetia Ceremony Conjuring a Spirit to Visible Appearance

As there has been a few blog entries lately by some well known individuals about the ins and outs of so called “physical manifestation”, I thought I would also contribute to the world of magical blog entries upon this matter, because I am one of those few who have performed it traditionally with all the required equipment and tools as stated in the text of the Goetia. But, this article will not be about the difference between the terms “physical manifestation” and “visible appearance” which, I have described before now, here http://www.evocationmagic.com/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=3028&p=30121&   or why it is, or is not a necessary requisite for success, as this has already been extremely well articulated by others such as Frater Ashen here = http://bryanashen.blogspot.com/2012/01/physical-manifestation-of-spirits.html Instead I will share with you four workings from my magical diary about traditionally conjuring the 70th spirit called Seere to visible appearance, which I did about two and a half years ago.

In this article I will explain exactly what happened in the ceremonies, what I seen, what I felt, the after effects, even the mistakes I made along the way, and details of the manifestation of the result I conjured the spirit for. By sharing a detailed account like this, I hope it will help others catch a glimpse of what a traditional evocation is like, while also showing the learning curve I went through in the process.

Diary entry friday 29 May 2009 Goetic Conjuration of Seere 

Started 11:17am Ended 1.17pm

I repeated 1^st conjuration 3x, the 2^nd conjuration 3x, the invocation of the King 3x with the 1^st and 2^nd conjuration, and the constraint 3-4 x.

After the 3^rd repetition of the first conjuration I felt very hot, but then it suddenly went a lot cooler. At one point I did see an electric coloured blue spark of light over the triangle which was in the east. I stopped at the end of the spirits chain and observed the area over the triangle, and I did see a lot of blue coloured light, which moulded together to form a football size ball of blue light. This happened while intently staring at the space in the air over the triangle. It felt like I was scrying, but staring into space in mid air. No manifestation, so I did not give the charge and instead repeated the license to depart 3x. I did not want to use the sulphur and asafoetida, and chickened out of using it.

I realised that I had forgotten to use the hyssop oil to anoint my eyes and temples with!

Diary entry 30 May 2009 Odd happening!

My son was sat on the floor watching t.v. I called him over to come and have a look at something on the computer, and no sooner had he got up and walked over to me, there was a mighty big crash and bang! My stag horns which were screwed into the wall had fallen off somehow, and had knocked over a solid granite stone cat statue, and two heavy wooden book ends off of the shelf below. The whole lot came crashing down and left a massive dent in my antique opium table, and landed on the floor where my son was previously sitting! The horns and wooden book ends would of landed on my son if I had not called him over to me!!!

The odd thing about this is that I had just taken a photo of my goetia book I was using to draw the spirits seals in. I had placed the book on the table to take a picture of it to show my friend, and then picking it up and then sitting down at my computer desk, and I then called my son over to me, and then BANG CRASH exactly where I had just took a picture of the book on the table! My friend suggested that the spirit's energy may have been responsible for this because it had possibly shown up and was still around. He thought this because when he had called the same spirit, he had heard lots of moving of things in his next door neighbours house during the ceremony, while the house was empty. I will never know if it was to do with the spirit or not, but, if it wanted my attention then it certainly had it now!

Diary entry : Tuesday 2 June 2009. 2^nd Conjuration of Seere

 Started: 10:30 am Ended: 12:03pm

At first I felt very hot, and then it went a lot cooler. I felt very anxious, as if something was about to happen any minuet. I started to see the blue light again, lots of it and with some purple colour to it as well. It again moulded into the shape of a ball that was quite big. I did not take this as a sign of the manifestation, and therefore I carried on the conjurations. At another point the wall on my left creaked. It does not normally do that! I also seen what appeared to look like heat waves in the air at the far tip of the triangle, like you see outside rising off the surface of the road on a hot day. Then I seen very briefly a beam of white light in the same spot, but the the telephone rang, which totally shook my concentration and disturbed the visionary effects. I let it ring as I did not want to leave the circle to answer it. I kept getting thoughts of “I can't be bothered to do this” and “is it worth the hassle”, then I started yawning and feeling really tired. Suddenly I found a new burst of energy and went for it with the conjurations once again, but after repeating them all for the second time back to back, I gave the curse and stared at the triangle to see nothing happen. This time I used the sulphur and asafoetida, but to no effect, except for a coughing fit and an awful smell. I could not seem to re-establish the higher state of consciousness I was in after the phone call had disturbed me. The phone rang again, and so I thought “oh fuck it, I give up” and I gave the license to depart.

Diary entry : same day : time: 8.00pm

Thinking about the goetic ceremony earlier today, I think the spirit did arrive and quite quickly too because the blue light display I observed was quite phenomenal! I remember it being quite bright blue with streaks of violet/purple. The light spread out across the space between the North-East & South-west quarter candles. It seemed to lap up against the edge of the circle like a wave rolling onto the shore. I now think this is the time that I should of given the address, and then the welcome because the spirit had arrived and was showing me a visible appearance of its presence. Which, is exactly what I asked for in the conjuration. “therefore come ye peaceably, visible and affable now without delay”

After speaking to a friend on the phone who also does traditional goetic evocation, he said to me that the spirit is only supposed to take on full manifestation after the address is given. Well its all part of the learning process.

I want to call the spirit again on Thursday, but it depends on how I feel because tomorrow I have to go into hospital and have one of my top wisdom teeth removed under general anaesthetic.

Diary entry : Friday 5 June : time 2:00pm

In too much pain to do any conjuring yesterday, there is no way I could recite conjurations, when in this type of pain without even moving my mouth.

Diary entry: Thursday 11 June.

I have been in horrendous pain and feeling very ill because I somehow managed to get an infection in my mouth where I had my wisdom tooth removed. I have not been able to eat properly or even hardly speak. I look like Pop-eye the bloody sailor man with his puffed out cheeks! I am taking antibiotics, tramadol and dihydrocodeine pain killers. This last week and a bit after the evocation has been a living hell because of the pain I have been in, and yesterday was my birthday. I certainly was in no mood to celebrate. This morning I was sick a few times, I really feel awful. I hope I start to get better soon. I wonder if this is all because I conjured the spirit the day before going into hospital and not giving it the charge, but this is where its energy has leaked out too instead effecting me in a negative way? It has hold of my attention again, and I must succeed with calling this spirit.

Diary entry Friday 26 June 3^rd Goetic Evocation of Seere

Started 11:07am Ended 12:53pm

 I entered into the ceremony feeling positive about calling Seere with a successful outcome, but I did not succeed. After a short while I realised I had forgot the gas stove fire that I use for heating up the seal in the box, should I need to use it. I carried on regardless, and no sooner had I decided to be determined, I was disturbed by a lot of noise from outside my house. The bin collection was late and made a right racket outside emptying everyone’s bins. By this time I was on the the second conjuration which I had repeated 3 x. I could not seem to reach the required spiritual state of mind, and felt more frustrated and annoyed than anything else.

The only significant occurrences were once to my left hand side of vision the space in the air seemed to tremble or move like a vibration, and the light coming from underneath the curtains was very briefly blocked, but this could have been anything outside, or even a trick of my mind. So this was another unsuccessful evocation attempt. I felt very tired and I felt as if I would be sick, as well as feeling very pissed off!

Diary entry Sunday 28 June. 4^th Goetic Evocation of Seere

Started 10:40am Ended 11:40am

 This time I had everything prepared. I repeated the first invocation 3 x and then I stared at the triangle on the floor. After a very short while a started to see a ball of blue light that became bigger. It then expanded into a mass of blue light, and like before it enveloped the eastern area of the room. It started to pulsate and I got excited, but contained my excitement because I new what I had to do this time, although I felt totally mesmerized and captivated by what I was seeing with my eyes. I felt like I could just stand there all day staring at this phenomena, but thought I better take it as a sign of the spirit's arrival. So I gave the address and lit the charcoal block and cast the incense upon it. Next I gave the welcome while continuing to stare at the blue light that had now gathered together directly over the triangle. I still felt hypnotised and totally captivated by the light, so I asked the spirit to take on human form visibly. Once I did this I suddenly had a clairvoyant vision impress itself upon my minds eye, while I was still seeing the blue light over the triangle with my physical eye sight. This was strange, as I was expecting the light to change into a form of some sort, but it didn't, and instead I had a type of split vision of an outer perception of my physical eyesight seeing the blue light, and this very strong impression of the form of the spirit that impressed itself quite forcefully upon my inner vision. The image was of a grey coloured slender being which had red eyes. It had the body of a man which was bare, with thin legs that looked like it was sat on something invisible. It was not very tall, maybe a little smaller than me, as I am only 5”5. It certainly looked otherworldly, but with brushed back hair and pointed ears, like pan or an elfish creature of some sort.

I gave it the charge for my request which was; “to give me a better home and enable me the opportunity to be able to live in a home that is more suitable for magical workings, a place where my son and I will be happy living in. I also asked him to reveal to me treasures that are hidden.

After this I thanked the spirit and gave the license to depart 3 x. I said prayers to God thanking him for the experience and how the working went.

Diary entry Monday 29 June Dreams

I was with a person who was stealing money to pay off his depts and to pay me. Next I stepped over these two sisters who were play fighting with each other in the street. Next I was in a shop where a baby that looked like a cat was asleep, she awoke and turned into a young child. Next I was in a room hiding inside a lion skin suite because another person or lion was waiting to eat a woman that would come in to the room.

Diary entry same day

Since the evocation of Seere yesterday I have felt very positive and upbeat. All negative feelings have vanished. I looked in a book today a friend lent to me, and I came across the name “Seir” which said “enemy of the rod of Jacob, a goat like demon” Remarkable! Seere actually looked like a satyr, a goat like demon!

Diary entry same day time : 2.18pm

Just had a phone call from my landlord housing company, informing me that my house has come up on the list for a new gas boiler and central heating system! This is excellent news, especially considering that I had a letter 3 months ago saying that there would be no heating improvements done to my house until the year 2019. I couldn't believe it, because it was one of the reasons why I wanted another place to live, because the heating system was an old back boiler in the chimney breast, which was costing an absolute fortune to run, and was so inefficient and noisy, I hated it and the old fashioned monstrosity of a gas fire which was connected to it in my living room, which would also be removed.

here is the letter I had 3 months before the ritual stating the date outlined in green of when the heating improvements would be done. 2019.

 I was very pleasantly surprised by this because I got what I asked for, although not in the way I had wanted, as I thought the best option was to move because of the letter I had a few months previously telling me about when they would be doing the work on my home. I did also get treasure revealed to me, but not in the way that I thought it would. I will save that story for another time.

The Feast of Epithany & Three Kings Holy Water

As a reminder for those that may have forgotten, and for those who do not know; tomorrow 6 January is the Feast of Epiphany, also called The Feast of the Three Kings. It is the day that celebrates the manifestation of deity in human form through Jesus Christ the Son. According to my mother it is also the day that you are supposed to take down your Christmas decorations, or if you have done so already, then you should of left one item up until tomorrow, otherwise it is bad luck! It is also bad luck to leave the decorations up past 6 January, so better take them down tomorrow. LOL.

The day of 6 January is a really good time to for making holy water that can be used in ones magical practices. This water is known as triple kings-water. I found this out from Joseph Peterson's edition of “The Sixth & Seventh Books of Moses” which is stated in the notes section page 297.

“Triple-kings water traditionally is simply holy water blessed during the feast of the Three Kings on January 6. People would use it to sprinkle on the doorways and around the home to bless it. They would write “C+M+B” and the year in chalk over the doorway to protect the home. C+M+B stands for the name of the Three Kings, Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar or alternately, ”Christus mansionem benedicat” - Christ bless this house”

 

But why is the feast of the Three Kings held on January 6. This is because divinity is shown here in the trinity aspect of mind, spirit & soul, symbolized as the Three Kings, and which always manifests in twelve stages. Hence the reason why there are twelve signs of the zodiac, twelve tribes of Israel, twelve legions of angels and the twelve apostles. Therefore 6 January is 'twelve' days after the Christ Divinity is born.

I wrote about this around this time last year on evocationmagic.com and now I have a blog I thought it would be a good idea to post this information up here, as a reminder for any other magicians that may want to create some holy water for the beginning of this year, as it is an ideal day to do it on. In addition to this and blessing my home, I also use it to consecrate my altar, and new items of magical equipment that I lay out on my altar.

The form of ritual I use for this is taken from Mr Skinner and Mr Rankine's edition of “The Veritable Key of Solomon” Chapter X Concerning Prayers in the form of Exorcisms in order to consecrate everything used in the Operations of the Great Art. It is a very short and simple ritual to do, and perfectly adequate for any new items that will be used in ones magical ceremonies, such as new candles, incenses, parchment and oils ect ect.

And if you are Italian, then I hope La Befana brings you some nice treats and sweets ;)

An allegorical interpretation of the Heptameron spirits Part 2. A Working with the Spirits of Mercury

Here is another entry that will give you an insight into how I have come to understand and practice magic. As with the last blog entry this is part of the same group of workings I did over the course of a week at the beginning of this year, using the invocations of the day for the angel and the spirits of the air of the day from the Heptameron. 

Before I start I am going to post a quote from one of my favourite authors, which will be best kept in mind when reading today's entry.

"Esotericism should not be understood as a rebus or a secret writing, but rather as the "spirit of the letter"-that is to say, that which cannot be transcribed clearly, not because there is any desire to conceal it, but because of the "cerebral" intellect's inaptitude for comprehending it"

R.A. Schwaller de Lubicz. "The Temple In Man"   

                         The Spirits of the Air of Wednesday

Are subject to the south-west wind, there nature is to give all metals, to reveal all earthly things past, present and to come, to pacify judges, to give victories in war, to re-edify and teach all experiments and all decayed sciences, and to give infirmities or health, to raise the poor and cast down the high ones; to bind or loose spirits, to open locks or bolts. Such kind of spirits have the operation of others but not in their perfect power, but in virtue or knowledge.

                                                                    Interpretation

“To give all metals.” Represents the higher and lower qualities of the soul. For example gold is symbolic of the divine spark of light that illuminates the soul. This can been seen by looking at the word in Latin for gold; “aurum”, from which other words in different languages for gold and light seem to stem from. Like “aureole” meaning “halo”, and the Welsh “aur” for “gold”. The French word for gold is “or” and in Hebrew the word “or” is the word for “light”. This is the light that God created on the first day, like the aurora, also known as the goddess of dawn. In the words of Peter; 2.1:19 “as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts”

“To reveal all earthly things, past present and to come.” Represents the manifestation of the trinity aspect of divine consciousness. This is distinctly shown in The Egyptian Book of the Dead; “I am Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow, and I have the power to be born a second time”. This second birth is the spiritual birth of divine consciousness, represented by Horus, the Christ consciousness. Which is also given in more or less the same words in the New Testament. Hebrews 13:8. “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and for ever”. The subconsciousness is yesterday, which represents the memory of our past. i.e. our divine origin. The consciousness is our present awareness “today” while living in the now . Tomorrow represents our higher consciousness which is unfolding for the future. All these three aspects of consciousness are realised while in our earthly state of being. It is our time line from remembering our divine origin to working on it now for the evolution of our divine state of being.

“To pacify judges.” This is a trait that is only attributed to the mercurial spirits of the air of Wednesday, and because of this it brings to mind the Egyptian “Hall of Two truths”, also known as the “Hall of Maat”. This is because it is here that the mercurial god Thoth plays the role of judge of truth, and records the deeds of the soul. He says; “Hear this word of very truth. I have judged the heart of the deceased, and his soul stands as a witness for him. His deeds are righteous in the great balance, and no sin has been found in him. He did not diminish the offerings in the temples, he did not destroy what has been made, he did not go about with deceitful speech while he was on earth.” (Chapt 30b)

Here Thoth pacifies the Great Ennead of gods on behalf of the soul of the deceased, and therefore the Great Ennead acknowledge this, and grant him (the deceased soul) land in the field of offerings in the presence of Osiris, where he will be like the followers of Horus. i.e. the spiritualized folk

If we apply this to ourselves, then Thoth or the spirits of Mercury are representative of the forces of intelligence which records our experiences upon the inner nature of our soul, and through the communication of these we must seek to be more favourably inclined to the judgements from others and ourselves, because it is through theses experiences that we are continually judged throughout life, and which will eventually lead us to the manifestation of a spiritual state of being and apotheosis.

“To give victories in war”. This sounds like an odd attribution for the mercurial spirits, but if looked at more closely in the allegorical context we shall see that it is rather quite fitting indeed. Most of the stories of war that are told in the mythological writings, and in the scriptures are symbolic stories of conflicts between the mental forces of the Higher nature, and the emotions and desires of the lower nature. Sometimes these stories are based on actual historical battles for the purpose of portraying a spiritual principle, like was done with the battle of kadesh which was apparently won single handedly by the Egyptian Pharaoh, Rameses The Great. The scenes of this rather unbelievable victory are engraved on the outside walls of the Luxor temple. In John Anthony West's book “Serpent In The Sky” he says; “Schwaller de Lubicz insists that the scene in its entirety, though it uses the actual battle of Kadesh as a reference point, is symbolic. Even the immodest Ramesside kings would not expect the populace to swallow the single-handed defeat of a powerful enemy, or to believe that these enemies could be vanquished by the king seated upon his golden throne in the midst of the enemy camp. The purpose of this complex relief is the depiction of the battle between the forces of light and darkness. Having vanquished the enemy, the king can enter the Temple; to enter the Temple all obstacles in the external world must be overcome. This is why the battle scenes are all on the exterior of the Temple walls”. (page 161-162)

The battle of Kadesh is a perfect example showing the triumphant victory of the higher spiritual nature (light) over the forces of the lower nature (darkness). Now as Mercury is linked to the intelligence and therefore the forces of the higher spiritual nature, it can easily be seen why the spirits of the air of Wednesday are said to give victories in war!

This is the war that is continually being fought within our soul, and for the higher spiritual nature to evolve, it must subdue the lower self and bring it under control so that equilibrium is restored, and we can enter the temple of the holy spirit to commune with our divine nature.

“But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ”

( Corinthians. 1.15:57 )

“to re-edify and teach all experiments and all decayed sciences”. To me this seems to be a hint that the mercurial spirits can teach the lost allegorical language, also known as the language of the birds. It is something I have used different mercurial spirits for. But, also out of interest, there is in the book of the Goetia the 53^rd spirit called Caim, who it is said of; “his office is to give men ye understanding of all birds” . He just so happens to be a president, which is a mercurial spirit!

“to give infirmities or health”. I take this to mean that the mercurial spirits can cause a weakness like a moral flaw, or failing, such as theft which is an attribute of mercury, along with deceitfulness and cunningness. It is often said that some criminals have a high intelligence, which is a mercurial trait but, if the intelligence is misdirected towards the wrong ends, then the negative attributes of mercury are likely to ensue causing infirmities.

“And behold there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and in no wise lift up herself. And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her. Woman thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God” (Luke 13:11-13) With this passage it shows the lack of completion in the lower nature of the soul, (because the word “woman” in the symbolic sense represents the lower emotional-astral nature) but through the higher spiritual nature (Jesus) one can be set straight again on the path of spiritual development to help heal the soul.

“to raise the poor and cast down the high ones”. In the word “poor” I see it to mean those who are in poverty of ignorance, and through knowledge can be raised up to partake of the richness of divine wisdom. “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth or rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal” (Matthew 6. 19:20)

Who are the “high ones”? There are many stories about high ones being cast down, like Saturn who was cast down to the depths of Tartarus, and the many instances in the Bible where the hosts of heaven are cast down to earth. “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth. And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and after many days shall be visited” (Isaiah 24:21-22) But, why were they cast down, and why would it be of use to the magician? The answer to this is summed up rather well by Iamblichus when talking about the powers that come down from heaven. “These, therefore, descend with invariable sameness for the salvation of the universe” (On The Mysteries page 68) For it is the powers of heaven that the magician shall bring down in order to aid the spiritual evolution of his or her soul.

“to bind or loose spirits”. This seems to be fairly self explanatory but, there are a couple of passages in the Gospel of Matthew which are quite interesting in regards to these attributes that are associated to the spirits of Mercury. “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” ( Matthew 16:19) The other passage Matt 18:18 is just a reiteration of the above

This shows the working of the “as above so below” law, and implies that if the lower forces are controlled on the physical level, then the higher forces are also under control in the spiritual level, but if the lower forces are unbound and uncontrolled on the material plane, then the higher forces in the spiritual level will be out of reach and unavailable. Or basically said, one must get their shit together before they can even think of calling up demons and invoking angels. One must have a degree of control over the forces that effect them in their daily lives because if not, then one will not have much success with working with the forces of the spiritual realm. It is with the mercurial powers of intelligence that we can use to help gain control over the forces that effect us on a daily basis. Interestingly in G.R.S. Mead's book “Thrice Greatest Hermes” he says; “Here again it is the symbolic Caduceus that represents the equilibrium between the opposed forces; it is the power of Thoth that binds and loosens; he holds the keys of heaven and hell, of life and death” (volume 1 page 61)

“to open locks or bolts”. This is obviously not meant to be taken literally because all one would need to use is a key! Not a spirit. Locks or bolts are placed on doors and gates, so allegorically speaking where do these doors or gates lead too? I would say they are the doors or gates to the different levels between heaven and hell. As said above, it is Thoth who holds the keys to heaven and hell, which is not surprising given that he rules the intelligence and the mind which lays mid way between the two. So given Thoth's mercurial nature it makes perfect sense why the spirits of mercury in the Heptameron are said to be able to open locks and bolts.

In the stories of mythology there are usually seven gates or doors to be opened. Like the seven gates that the soul of Ani travels through in the Egyptian underworld, as described in the Book of the Dead. Properly called “The Book of Going Forth By Day”. To open these gates the names of its guardians are needed to be known, and once through them the deceased is able to enter the domain of Osiris in the Field of Reeds.(the Egyptian Heaven). There are the seven gateways that Inanna passes through to go to the underworld in Sumerian mythology, and not forgetting the seven heavens of Gnostic lore, and which are also referred to in the Heptameron. I would say it is the locks and bolts of the doors to these realms that the spirits of Mercury can unlock, therefore enabling us the knowledge to gain access to these spheres where the spirits of them can initiate us further into the mysteries, which can lead us to greater spiritual awakening. 

I also believe that because the mercurial spirits impart the knowledge to help the magician unlock the doors to the other heavens, is the reason why the Heptameron says; “ Such kind of spirits have the operation of others but not in their perfect power, but in virtue or knowledge”

Here is another adapted Heptameron ritual I did at the beginning of this year on Wednesday 26^th January 2011. Time 12:45am

Invocation of Raphael and the Spirits of the Air of Wednesday

The ritual consists of the same procedure as given in my previous blog entry for the spirits of the air of Sunday, but obviously with the invocation of Wednesday instead.

Purpose : To teach me further knowledge of symbolism (allegorical language) and how to apply it practically to my workings to transform my lower qualities into higher spiritual ones, to give me a sharp mind and the knowledge of all metals, to heal my infirmities and further my spiritually development. To appear in my dreams and teach me that which I need to know.

Comments : During the rite when I stated my petition, I felt a connection, and the wind outside suddenly sounded way much more powerful. It even started making a sound through the air vent in the chimney breast, which it was not doing before. This added to the atmosphere, and for a short while I actually felt apprehensive and slightly panicky. I wanted to open my eyes and look behind me, but I didn't, and took it as a sign of acknowledgement for my petition. I was not expecting anything like that to happen straight away because I was only seeking contact in my dream state.

Diary extract 27^th January 2011. 

                                               Dreams

I went to another country which I thought was Iran. When looking at it from high up above it was very green, and also contained two bodies of water with a river running between them. There was a war going on there in this country. Next I was with a group of people in a quiet location, they were making Persian rugs. I bought two which were an orange colour, and when they were cut off it was below a label that said “made in Iran in the war. Year 2000”. The rugs cost 30 but I can't remember what the currency was, but when converted into £ it worked out that the rugs had cost me £3, and now I had three rugs! There was a man who had helped me figure out the conversion rate of the price of the rugs. He was an Arab dressed in white with a white turban on his head. He was very friendly and very helpful with things he was telling me. When I was about to leave to go back home to my country, he said to me I was welcome to come back any time if I wanted to buy more rugs from his people in this quiet village.

Interpretation

This seems like a very significant dream with relevant symbolism. Iran (ancient Persia) represents the mental plane, the plane of mind which is above the astral level. When I looked at it from above I seen the country as a vast green land, this is the symbolic colour of the astral plane because the colour symbolises growth through desire. The two bodies of water represent the two truths of the lower physical nature and the higher spiritual nature, with the river of life that the soul journeys along and is connected between the two physical and spiritual states of being. Seeing this from above means from a higher perspective in the mental plane.

The war taking place in Iran (mental plane) is symbolic of the higher nature subduing the lower nature. The people making Persian rugs is symbolic of the energies of the mental plane producing higher qualities. These qualities ( the rugs) that I purchased were of a mercurial nature because they were coloured orange, which is the colour of Hod and associated to Mercury. These higher mental qualities had been produced during the war. (Event of the spiritualisation of the lower nature) As I paid for these qualities with £3, it shows it has something to do with exchanging lower qualities (symbolised as money) into mercurial qualities expressed through the trinity of mind spirit and soul, because I ended up with three rugs. Within the process was also implied a spiritual transformation of some sort for the purpose of gaining the higher mercurial qualities. This was symbolised by the Arab man helping me to convert the payment into my own currency, so I could see and understand how much it cost me.

The Arab man dressed all in white and with a white turban, reminded me a bit of the picture of the mercurial spirit Ophiel as shown in Denning & Phillips book “Planetary Magick” I am certain that he represented a spirit of Mercury, but I do not know which one. He was very helpful and I did spend some time with him, I just couldn't remember the things we discussed, but, I felt that he was very helpful.

Given the facts that I viewed the land from above, and the spirit told me I could come back, seems to signify to me that I had travelled to the spirits sphere!

This was a very successful working, bringing to fruition exactly what I requested and in a short space of time, but also it is a process that is still continually working for me, and hopefully will continue too.